Changes to planning rules are “dangerous”, as they could leave communities at
the mercy of developers’ bulldozers, according to a senior bishop.

The Bishop of Ripon and Leeds, the Rt Rev John Packer, warned that the rules would allow developments when councils had not set out local plans, which would make clear where building can take place.

His intervention is the first time that a senior cleric has entered the dispute over the Government’s National Planning Policy Framework.

The framework distils 1,300 pages of planning guidance into as few as 52, and writes in a “presumption in favour of sustainable development”. Groups including the National Trust fear this will allow developers to build on large parts of the countryside. The Daily Telegraph is also campaigning to urge ministers to rethink the proposals.

The bishop criticised the draft rules during a House of Lords debate. He said: “Just because no one has thought about a proposal before does not mean that it should automatically be granted. A default answer of 'yes’ seems to be dangerous in legislation and could well lead to problems in, for example, the proper provision of affordable housing.”

The bishop also called for a rebalancing of the draft framework so it was not overly biased in favour of economic development. During the debate, Baroness Hanham, the communities minister, said she agreed that “economic development should not be the be all and end all”.